Social Navigation for Semantic Web Applications Using Space Maps

In this paper we deal with personalized navigation in an open information space. Our aim is to support effective orientation in increasing amount of information accessible through the Web. We present a method for personalized navigation based on social navigation where the information space is represented by an ontology. Navigational information is obtained by following user footsteps. It is attached to information fragment mapped to the user goal and to description of this goal using an ontology. This information is used later to show the way to similar goals. We use ontology representation of the information space that supports the effective navigation and the navigational ability to deal with frequent changes of information content in open environments. We demonstrate the proposed method in the context of developed software tool PENA for personalized navigation support in labor supply domain

COMPARISON OF TOURISM PERFORMANCE IN CHOSEN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES WITH THE ACCENT TO SLOVAK REPUBLIC IN THE PERIOD BEFORE AND AFTER ACCESSION TO EUROPEAN UNION MEMBERSHIP AT THE BEGINNING OF 21ST CENTURY

Article reviews the development of tourism in the three selected countries of the European Union in the early 21st century. It focuses to the period before and after accession of the Slovak Republic to the European Union. The study points to the area that is dedicated to tourism within the European community. The findings present the evaluation of selected indicators: number/development of accommodation facilities of transitional housing) of the national tourism in the stated period on the example of the Slovak Republic, the Czech Republic and Germany. To evaluate the development of tourism sphere on chosen indicators there were used and presented mathematical - statistical methods as: the arithmetic average, standard deviation, coefficient of variation, median, average growth rate, the average rate of increase, the geometric average, and correlation and regression analysis. Since the compared countries have significantly different population rate, infrastructure and tourism operators’ coverage, comparison of absolute indicators of these countries in the field of tourism was limited to basic findings of the results of elementary statistical characteristics - capacity of collective tourist accommodation establishments and their growth rate. The survey results pointed to significant differences in performance in tourism of chosen countries

Analiza projektu „Europejskie miasto sportu” i jego wpływu na rozwój aktywności turystycznej na przykładzie wybranych miast słowackich

W artykule została omówiona kwestia rozwoju aktywności sportowej na przykładzie projektu pod nazwą Europejskie Miasto Sportu. W wybranych miastach Słowacji (Koszycach, Bańskiej Bystrzycy i Nitrze) przeprowadzono analizę działań mających na celu rozwój tych miejscowości oraz wspieranie turystyki poprzez organizację międzynarodowych imprez sportowych. Dzięki zastosowaniu kilku metod, zwłaszcza komparatywnej, można porównać wybrane przedsięwzięcia i związane z nimi problemy. Wspomniane wydarzenia i inne prowadzone czynności wsparły nie tylko rozwój sportu, ale również turystyki w badanych miastach. Przegląd literatury pozwala ocenić główne założenia oraz znaczenie popularnego projektu pod nazwą Europejskie Miasto Sportu. Analiza porównawcza pokazuje intensywność działań w każdym z trzech wspomnianych słowackich miast

An analysis of the "European City of Sports" project and its impact on the development of tourist activity: The example of selected Slovakian cities

The paper presents the issue of sports activity development in the context of the European City of Sports project in selected Slovakian cities: Košice, Banská Bystrica and Nitra. It is an analytical overview aiming at the development of these cities for tourism through the organisation of international sporting events. Using several methods, especially comparison, the authors analyse certain activities and other sports-related issues. The events and activities not only contributed to the development of sport but also supported tourism in the region. A review of the literature on the subject demonstrates the importance and basic assumptions of the European City of Sports as a popular project. The comparative analysis has enabled the authors to present its results in each of the three Slovakian cities

PERCEPTION OF THE NECESSITY OF DIGITAL INNOVATIONS APPLICATION AS AN ELEMENT OF HEALTH PROTECTION AND SUSTAINABLE HOSPITALITY SECTOR FUTURE

Hospitality, which suffered a huge blow during the Covid-19 period and had to adapt its operation to pandemic measures, heads for its recovery. Innovation is one of the ways to get out of an unfavourable situation having in mind that health risks can represent a significant factor affecting participation in tourism. The paper specifies the perception of the necessity of digital innovations application as health protection factor and sustainable mean of hospitality sector developme nt. It shows how of tourism participant in domestic condition of Slovak republic perceive the need of their application to hospitality services. Through the questionnaire method it examined opinion of domestic visitors in hospitality and its direction towards the digitization of services in this sphere, and subsequently tested by Mann-Whitney and Kruskall-Wallis tests. The results show that Slovak tourists treat digital innovation in hospitality services as the ones, that are a necessa ry part of tourism services portfolio. Their specifics can also be defined in terms of health protection. They can act as an element of health protection by eliminating contact among individual tourism participants. At the same time, they also perceive them as a means that tends to keep the hospitality industry alive even in the post-pandemic period

Study on metal-triggered callose deposition in roots of maize and soybean

Abstract: Callose plays important roles in a variety of processes of plant development, and/or in a response to a range of biotic and abiotic stresses. In the current work we have studied and compared the effect of lead, cadmium and arsenic on accumulation of newly formed callose deposits in the roots of maize and soybean. We observed formation of characteristic callose deposits in the root cell walls, probably associated with plasmodesmata, depending on the type of metal and the plant species investigated. Further, the callose turnover was analysed by measuring of total callose content as well as activities of total β-(1,3)-glucanases in roots. The latter enzymes are responsible for callose depletion, and their possible role during metal stress has previously been proposed. However, neither of these biochemical values appeared to be sufficiently reliable for scoring the altered callose turnover (including local deposits) in plant tissue. The microscopical observations are discussed in light of the biochemical data obtained

Analytical study on adventure tourism destination management concerning expenditure on adventure activities

Adventure tourism represents a popular and developing type of tourism, which requires new research concepts due to its changes. Before the pandemic period, the destinations of adventure tourism were developing dynamically. The pandemic limited its activities due to restrictions related to travel and the opening of tourism businesses. Future development thus needs new management approaches that reflect new research of adventure tourist profiles. The main goal of the study is to analyse the Slovak participant in adventure tourism with regard to its expenditures associated with adventure tourism. The survey was performed using a questionnaire survey method on a sample of 135 respondents. The results were evaluated using contingency tables (relative abundance), and the established hypotheses were evaluated using Pearson's chi-square test. An important finding found within the expenditures on adventure tourism is that the type of adventure activity and the choice of destination influence its participants. Therefore, the Slovak participant in adventure tourism corresponds with the findings of foreign studies. The study is actually due to the current pandemic situation where adventurous tourism. It brings results from the new-pandemic period, which has not yet been studied in scientific research. The findings can serve as a basis for the management of adventure tourism destinations due to the change in the behaviour and preferences of its participants, even in the context of expenditure. The novelty of the study is based on new updating of the previous studies sourcing from the period of the turn of the millennium and later of the so-called period of adventure tourism expansion. The findings can be beneficial due to current changes in the tourism market when the emphasis is on higher individuality and the natural environment in the consumption of tourism products. Current management of tourist destinations should respect this important fact

The humidity level matters during the desiccation of Norway spruce somatic embryos

In Norway spruce, as in many other conifers, the germination capacity of somatic embryos is strongly influenced by the desiccation phase inserted after maturation. The intensity of drying during desiccation eminently affected the formation of emblings (i.e., seedlings developed from somatic embryos). Compared to non-desiccated embryos, the germination capacity of embryos desiccated at 100% relative humidity was about three times higher, but the reduction of relative humidity to 95 and 90% had a negative effect on the subsequent embryo development. The water loss observed in these embryos did not lead to an increase in lipid peroxidation, as shown by malondialdehyde levels. Another metabolic pathway in plants that mediates a response to abiotic stresses is directed toward the biosynthesis of polyamines (PAs). The activities of PA biosynthetic enzymes increased steadily in embryos during desiccation at 100% relative humidity, whereas they decreased at lower humidity. The total content of free PAs in the embryos gradually decreased throughout desiccation. The increase in free putrescine (Put) and perchloric acid-insoluble Put conjugates was observed in embryos desiccated at lower humidity. These changes were accompanied to some extent by the transcription of the genes for the PA biosynthesis enzymes. Desiccation at 100% relative humidity increased the activity of the cell wall-modifying enzymes β-1,3-glucanases and chitinases; the activities of these enzymes were also significantly suppressed at reduced humidity. The same pattern was observed in the transcription of some β-1,3-glucanase and chitinase genes. Desiccation treatments triggered metabolic processes that responded to water availability, suggesting an active response of the embryo to the reduction in humidity. A positive effect was demonstrated only for desiccation at high relative humidity. Some of the physiological characteristics described can be used as markers of inappropriate relative humidity during somatic embryo desiccation

Occupational structure in the Czech lands under the second serfdom

This article presents an analysis of occupational structure, a key component of the ‘Little Divergence’, in an eastern-central European economy under the second serfdom, using data on 6,983 Bohemian villages in 1654. Non-agricultural activity was lower than in western Europe, but varied positively with village size, pastoral agriculture, sub-peasant strata, Jews, freemen, female headship, and mills, and negatively with arable agriculture and towns. It showed a curvilinear relationship with the ‘second serfdom’, as proxied by landlord presence on village holdings. Landlord presence in serf villages also reversed the positive effects of female headship and mills on non-agricultural activities. Under the second serfdom, landlords encouraged serf activities from which they could extract rents, while stifling others which threatened manorial interests.We gratefully acknowledge financial support from the Professor Dame Elizabeth Hill Fund at the University of Cambridge; the British Academy Small Research Grant Scheme; the Collaborative Project HIPOD, supported by the European Commission's 7th Framework Programme for Research, Contract Number SSH7-CT-2008-225342; and the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic, Grant Number 13-138485. Alexander Klein Snr, Lucie Matějková, and Václav Žďárek provided excellent research assistance. This project builds on the lifelong work of the late Václav Červený and we are grateful to him for allowing us to build upon the data he collected.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley via http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ehr.1211

Natural deep eutectic solvents present in plant exudates? A case study on the saps of Droseraspecies

Plant science